Abstract
The resistance upset welds (RUW) made from E110 alloy without and with Cr coatings were oxidized in air atmosphere at 1100 °C for 2, 10 and 30 min. The cross-section microstructure, elemental composition and hardness were studied before and after oxidation using optical and scanning electron microscopy, and indentations in welding region. The RUW welding does not noticeably change oxidation kinetics of E110 alloy. The most crucial effect has surface non-regularities formed after welding, which prevent uniform coating deposition on full surface of welded cladding tube and end plug. Cr coating deposition can strongly reduce oxidation of welded E110 alloy, while additional post-processing treatment should be applied to improve surface morphology after RUW welding. Several suggestions favorable to development of ATF Zr-based claddings using Cr coating deposition on welded nuclear rods were discussed.
Highlights
IntroductionAccident tolerant fuel (ATF) is being developed to improve safety of light or pressurized water reactors [1,2]
Oxidation of Cr-Coated ResistanceCurrently, accident tolerant fuel (ATF) is being developed to improve safety of light or pressurized water reactors [1,2]
The last published data showed that Zrbased alloys can be protected by magnetron deposited Cr coating during high temperature (HT) oxidation for a long-term period [9]
Summary
Accident tolerant fuel (ATF) is being developed to improve safety of light or pressurized water reactors [1,2]. The short-term ATF strategy is aimed to improve safety of already produced Zr-based alloy claddings by deposition of protective coatings. The last published data showed that Zrbased alloys can be protected by magnetron deposited Cr coating during high temperature (HT) oxidation for a long-term period [9]. Such an approach seems to be one of the best prospects for short-term development of ATF. The high potential of Cr coatings can be confirmed by the participation of industrial/research institutes such as CEA (France), VNIINM (Russia), KIT (Germany) and others [7,9,10,11] in several full-scale tests of ATF
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